MORE THOUGHTS ON THE AWARE SITUATION

There has been more updates in the papers on the AWARE situation and there has been a lot of feedback and comments from the public. Even the government leaders have commented.

The recent press conferences and newspaper reports appear to further point towards the existence of a religious bias in the whole matter. In addition, the situation has gotten serious enough that some of the new committee members have received death threats. I greatly symphathise with the affected parties regarding this, but have not changed my views on the matter.

The following quotes from the various Straits Times articles sum up my thoughts and opinions on this matter most precisely (saving me the trouble of trying to get my thoughts on paper, or the blog, with my limited language abilities):

ST (Saturday 25/04/2009), Pg A2
AWARE SAGA: A NEW MILITANCY EMERGES By Chua Mui Hoong

"There is nothing objectionable about zeal for one's faith per se. But action aimed at.....enforcing a particular religious view on everyone can have harmful social and political consequences in a multi-religious society."

"It is especially troublesome when people go beyond spreading their religious beliefs to attempting to legislate their preferred moral practices."

"...religious fundamentalism of all kinds can do harm......if it invalidates others' faiths and seeks to use the law to suppress the practices of minority groups."

ST (Saturday 25/04/2009), Pg A24
Review and Forum - AWARE: NOW THE PUBLIC KNOWS

"....Singaporeans and women especially will in good time form their own judgements of what the team wishes to have accomplished and of members' beliefs."

Exactly.

There is just one more quote that made an impression on me, though this has more to do with my long-standing views on Christian evangelism in Singapore:

ST (Saturday 25/04/2009), Pg A37
Forum - HURT BY FALL OUT From Mr Lye Kah Cheong

".....two innocent groups will be the real losers: women and Christians.....Most Christian Singaporeans are tolerant and respectful and do not agressively impose their religious views on others. We must not let the recent events in Aware affect our view of Christians in Singapore."

I am willing. Just please keep those evangelists away the next time I am trying to enjoy a leisurely meal in a restaurant.